“The first period was a step in the right direction. But then we went to that one-man show stuff. We’ve got to reach a level of maturity as a group, understand who we are as a team and do it on a consistent basis. That’s what the St. Louis Blues are, and that’s what we have to be.

“We have good stretches where we play with that underdog mentality. But emotionally and physically, tonight we were not on the same page.

“We have to dig in, but we’re not. We’re just scuffing our shoes.”

The Rivermen got off the ropes and tied it 3-3 at 10:07 of the second period when left wing Chris Porter batted a knee-high rebound from the doorstep into an open left side of the net.

But the Stars re-took the lead at 16:04 when Vincour raced down the slot ahead of the Peoria defense to notch a shorthanded goal.

The Stars turned it into a blowout, adding goals from Justin Dowling, Toby Petersen, Maxime Fortunus and Vincour before the third period was half done.

“The tide had turned our way for a little bit,” said Chris Porter, who tied the game 3-3 midway through the second period. “We played our best in the first period, though, when we played a simple game.”

RIVER READINGS: Blues veteran left wing Chris Porter cleared NHL waivers on Saturday and was sent down to the Rivermen, as expected. He was in the starting lineup with center Adam Cracknell and right wing Sergey Andronov. ... Porter’s goal was his first for the Rivermen since a Feb. 23 goal — also against Texas at Carver Arena — during the 2010-11 season. ... Rivermen AHL All-Star defenseman Mark Cundari sat out with a leg injury.

Dave Eminian covers the Rivermen for the Journal Star. Reach him at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @icetimecleve.